Envelope



Aug. 26, 1941. c. v. wALTERs ENVELOPE Filed May 15, 19594 v7- rz'g': l??? .V20

VH/ai Patented Aug. 26, 1.941

Carroll V. Walters, Kansas City, Kans., assigner of one-half to Henry J. Burasco, Kansas City,

Application May 15, 1939, serial No. 273,734

2 Claims.

This invention relates to envelopes equipped with tear cr rip cords for the opening of such envelopes along three sides. It has long been recognized that if means could be provided to insure the recipient of enveloped mail matter could fully and neatly open the envelope, the inner surface could be used asa display medium for printed advertising matter. The prime object of the present invention therefore, is to produce a practical construction of the character under consideration which can be made on standard envelope machines with very little adjustment.r

Although tear cords or threads along three sides of envelopes are old, so far as I am aware no means has been provided for the application of such tear lcords around three sides of an envelope, except by hand operations. Hand production of such material is impracticable because of cost. 'I'he chief object of the present invention, therefore, is to provide an envelope of the general character outlined which is so made that all of the operations can be quickly and easily performed, whereby the envelope can be opened at three sides for exposing matter printed on the interior of the envelope if it bears printed matter.

It is .also useful as aconvenient means of opening envelopes without chance mutilation of their contents. v

With the general ob-jects named in view, an others as will hereinafter appear, the invention consists in certain novel and useful features of construction and organization of parts as hereinafter described and claimed; and in order that it may be fully understood, reference is to be had to the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of van envelope blank equipped with an a'ixed tear strip or cord for quick and clean opening of the envelope when formed, along three sides.

Figure 2 is .a similar View but with certain of the parts partially folded in the process of forming an envelope.

Figure 3 is a perspective View of the completed envelope ready for use.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of a blank fo-r transformation into an envelope of a slightly modified form, in which the tear cords may be applied simultaneously to two envelope blanks.

Figure 5 is a perspective View Vof an envelope formed from a blank of the type shown in K Figure 4.

Figure 6 is a detail View o-f one method of applying the tear thread to an envelope blank or filler sheet'.

Figure 7 is a detail View of the double tear thread arrangement used in connection with the simultaneousv production of two envelopes of the type shown in Figure 4.

Figures 1 throughgS illustrate the preferred form of envelope, in which I is the body or face of an oblong envelope blank, the two long edges of said body being formed with flaps 2 and 3,

. separated from the body by the fold lines 4 and 5 respectively. The two ends of the body I are provided with a pair of similar flaps 6 demarcated from the body by parallel fold lines l, and set off from the flaps 6 by fold lines 8 extending diagonally as regards the fold lines l, are similar terminal flaps 9.

The flaps 9 have one of their edges alined with the fold lines 5 forming one edge of the body portion I, and secured along suchedge and extending continuously across both flaps 9 and the body l, is la tear or rip cord Ill. 'Ihe exact means of securing the rip cord in position is immaterial to the invention, but I have found that the most satisfactory method of securing the cord is as shown in Figure 10, where the cord I0 is enrolled in one edge of an adhesive paper strip II, the paper strip being then applied to the envelope blank with the thread in the position shown.

In the type of construction illustrated in Figures l through 3, the edges of the flaps 2, 3 and 6 are provided with adhesive as shown at I2. The envelope is now formed by folding the flaps 9 to overlie the flaps 6 as shown in Figure 2, the adhesive along the edge of the aps 6 holding said flaps 9 in position to avoid bulking in the mouth of the envelope as will hereinafter appear, although it is to be understood that the adhesive on the `flaps 6 is not essential. This operation brings the tear cord I, carried by the edges of the flaps 9 into parallelism With the fold lines 'l demarcating the ends of the blank I, ultimately forming the ends of the envelope. The two fiaps 6 and 9 are now folded over on lines 'l to overlie the body I, and the flap 3 is folded to overlie said ends, see Figure 3, .and the adhesive on the edges of the flap 3 secures the parts in final envelope forming position, For convenience, one 'corner of the envelope may be weakened as at I3, and the face of the envelope may carry any suitable signal (not shown) calling attention to thevweakened corner. When the corner at I3 is torn olf by the recipient of the envelope, one end of the cord I0 is retained within the torn-off corner and by pulling on the cord the three sides of the envelope are torn or opened, as will be readily understood.

Manufacturing cost may be saved by applying the tear strip to two envelopes in a single operation as shown in Figures 4 and 5. In this construction, I4 and I5 are respectively the front .and rear body portions of an envelope arranged in opposing pairs along the center line of the paper stock to be severed along such center line as will hereinafter appear. Since the construction of this type of envelope is shown in duplicate, only one envelope will be particularly described. The back body portion I5 is formed at each end with a ap I6 demarcated by a fold line II, 'and said flaps I6 carry second aps I8 demarcated by fold lines I9 'angularly arf' ranged with respect to the fold lines I1. EX- tending along the center line of the Ydouble blank is a pair of tear cords 20 which are pref-v erably of the construction shown in Figure 11, in which a pair of threads or cords 20 are secured on opposite sides of the center line of the blank by an adhesive equipped paper strip" 22, which are now folded down on the outer side of the back body portion l5 and are glued or gummed in position, thus completing the envelope as it appears in Figure 5.

I claim:

1. An enveloping blank comprising a body portion, a flap at one end of the body portion and separated therefrom by a fold line, a second flap projecting from the rst flap and separated therefrom by a fold line in angular relation to the rst fold line, said second ilap having a free edge alined with one side edge of the body portion and being adapted to be brought into parallelism With the rst fold line, and a flexible severing element extending along the alined edges of the body portion and said second flap.

2. Anrenveloping blank comprising a body portion, flaps at opposite ends of the body portion and'separated therefrom by parallel fold lines, a pair of similar second flaps projecting from the first flaps and separated therefrom by fold lines extending in opposite angular relation to the first fold lines, said second flaps each having a free edge alined with one side edge of the body portion and being adapted lto be brought into parallelism with the first fold lines, and a flexible severing element extending along the alined edges of the body portion and said second flaps.

CARROLL V. /VALTERS. 

